Karun Nair... the Indian cricketer who once grabbed headlines with a triple century against England in Test cricket. However, after that glorious feat, Nair's shine dimmed, and he found himself out of the international cricket scene. His dip in form also led to him being dropped from Karnataka's Ranji team and the Indian Premier League (IPL).
They say not all days are the same... Karun Nair is back in his prime, creating a storm with his bat. First, he amassed a mountain of runs in the recent domestic season, and now he has made a spectacular return in the Indian Premier League, leaving fans amazed.
After almost three years, Karun Nair played an IPL match for the Delhi Capitals against Mumbai Indians. Initially not in the playing eleven, Nair was sent in as an 'Impact Substitute' after Delhi lost a wicket on the first ball while chasing a target. This decision by the Delhi team management proved to be spot-on as Karun began smashing runs with powerful shots.
In no time, Nair reached a fifty off just 22 balls, completing it during the powerplay. This was his first IPL fifty in almost seven years. During this spell, he even took on 'Yorker King' Jasprit Bumrah, amassing 18 runs in the sixth over. This was the highest number of runs by an Indian batsman off a single over from Bumrah in the IPL.
Most Runs in an Over off Bumrah in IPL
26 - Pat Cummins (Kolkata Knight Riders), 2022 20 - Dwayne Bravo (Chennai Super Kings), 2018 18 - Karun Nair (Delhi Capitals), 2025* 17 - Faf du Plessis (Chennai Super Kings), 2021
Most Runs in the Powerplay for Delhi Capitals
78 (24) - Jake Fraser-McGurk vs Mumbai Indians, 2024 50 (20) - Jake Fraser-McGurk vs Rajasthan Royals, 2024 50 (22) - Karun Nair vs Mumbai Indians, 2025*
As long as Karun was on the pitch, Delhi was ahead in the run chase, with their score at 135 for two in 11.3 overs. There was even a possibility of him scoring his first IPL century, but on the next ball from Mitchell Santner, he was bowled. Nair faced just 40 balls, scoring 89 runs, which included 12 fours and 5 sixes, marking his highest IPL score to date.
After Karun Nair was out, the rest of the Delhi team crumbled like a house of cards, falling short of the 206-run target with a final score of 193. Three consecutive run-outs in the 19th over also contributed to Delhi's downfall. Although Delhi lost the match, Karun's innings will be remembered for a long time.
Source: aajtak
It's been a long time since Bumrah faced such an onslaught in the IPL from a batsman. Nair tackled 9 balls off Bumrah, scoring 26 runs, including two sixes and three fours. These were the second-most runs scored by an Indian against Bumrah in a single IPL match, with Shikhar Dhawan leading with 27 runs off 16 balls in the 2016 season.
Most Runs Against Bumrah in an IPL Match (Indian Player)
27 (16) - Shikhar Dhawan (Sunrisers Hyderabad), 2016 26 (9) - Karun Nair (Delhi Capitals), 2025* 25 (11) - Rahul Tripathi (Kolkata Knight Riders), 2021 25 (9) - Wriddhiman Saha (Gujarat Titans), 2022 23 (12) - Virat Kohli (RCB), 2015
At 33, Karun Nair returned to the IPL pitch after 1077 days. He last represented Rajasthan Royals against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2022. Absent from the 2023 and 2024 seasons, Delhi Capitals picked him up for just 5 million at the IPL 2025 mega auction. If not for his domestic cricket accomplishments, Nair might have gone unsold at this mega auction.
Notably, during the last domestic season with Vidarbha, Karun Nair hit a total of 9 centuries. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25, he delivered an outstanding performance, scoring 779 runs in 8 innings at an average of 389.50, including five centuries and one half-century. His scores were 112*, 44*, 163*, 111*, 112, 122*, 88*, and 27, getting out in just two innings.
Under Karun Nair’s captaincy, Vidarbha reached the final, where they lost to Karnataka. In the Ranji Trophy 2024-25, Nair scored 863 runs in 9 matches with a 53.93 average, including four centuries, helping Vidarbha to become Ranji champions for the third time.
Source: aajtak
Back in December 2016, Karun Nair hit a memorable triple century in Test cricket against England in Mohali, scoring an unbeaten 303 runs. However, subsequent poor performances saw him out of the team. His last Test match was against Australia in March 2017. To date, he has played six Test matches for India, averaging 62.33 with a total of 374 runs and featuring in just two ODIs, scoring 46 runs.
Karun Nair still feels the pain of being sidelined from the Indian team. On December 10, 2022, he tweeted, "Dear cricket, give me one more chance," following the announcement of the Test team against Bangladesh, where he was not included. He was also left out of Karnataka’s Ranji squad during that period.
With his current form, Karun Nair surely deserves another chance to make his way back into the Indian team, and he is confident about his return. It's just a matter of time when he will don the Indian jersey again, silently urging the selectors, "Give me one more chance..."
